Compounding
High-Speed Extrusion: Are You Ready for the Fast Lane?
Around three dozen, mostly European, processors are pushing commercial development of high-speed single-screw extrusion. They have installed more than 100 of the small hyper-drive machines whose screws turn at up to 1500 rpm, about eight to 10 times faster than standard extruders. At least two German machine builders are working on machines that will go to 2000 rpm and even higher. The goal is to raise output without increasing extruder size.
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Novel Liquid Modifiers for Polyolefins Have Multiple Functions
A family of liquid polymer modifiers with a proven track record in EPDM compounds has been expanded for use in a broad range of polyolefins.
Read MorePolyOne to Close Seven Plants
WEB EXCLUSIVE Over the next nine months, PolyOne Corp., Avon Lake, Ohio, will close seven production facilities in North America and one in the U.K. as part of an overall realignment of its manufacturing assets.
Read MoreDow to Buy Rohm and Haas
Dow Chemical Co., Midland, Mich., has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Rohm and Haas of Philadelphia.
Read MoreClariant Acquires Liquid-Color Producer
Swiss-based Clariant has acquired the combined companies of Rite Systems, Inc. and Ricon Colors, Inc.
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Composites Embrace Mass Production
The focus this year at the international JEC Composites Show in Paris was not so much on brand-new processes as on adapting existing processes and materials for mass production, especially of large parts with critical structural demands. Attracting the most attention was wind energy, where composite material usage is growing more than 17%/yr, according to Gurit (formerly SP Systems), a Swiss-based global prepreg supplier with U.S. operations.
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Enhancing Biopolymers: Additives Are Needed for Toughness, Heat Resistance & Processability
Plastics are going 鈥済reen,鈥 but they will need some help to get there. Biodegradable polymers derived from renewable resources are attracting lots of interest and publicity, but that enthusiasm is counterbalanced by persistent questions of availability, cost, performance, and processability. All these issues are inter-related: Increasing demand will lead to more capacity, which will presumably lead to lower prices. But the foundation is market demand, which ultimately depends on whether biopolymers will have the performance properties and processability to compete with existing non-renewable plastics.
Read MoreClariant and Bayer Partners In Nanotube Compounds
To take advantage of the electrical conductivity and mechanical strength afforded by carbon nanotubes (CNT), Bayer MaterialScience AG in Germany (U.S. office in Pittsburgh) and Clariant Masterbatches (U.S. office in Winchester, Va.) signed a long-term cooperation agreement for development, production, and sales of CNT/thermoplastic compounds and masterbatches.
Read MoreBaerlocher Gets Chemtura’s OBS Stabilizers for Rigids
Germany鈥檚 Baerlocher (U.S. headquarters in Dover, Ohio) has acquired the proprietary organic-based heat stabilizer (OBS) 911爆料网 of Chemtura Corp., Middlebury, Conn., for rigid PVC applications.
Read MorePolyOne Makes New Moves
A new compounding alliance, expansion in liquid colors, and two new 911爆料网 units are the latest headlines from PolyOne Corp., Cleveland.
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